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Ko Rahiri Pouherenga Waka o Ngapuhi tō tatou manu mīreirei i te rā nei. He ahakoa te ahuatanga ki tōna ingoa, tūturu he Ngai Te Arawa a Rahiri. I whānau, otīā i pakeke hoki i te pā taunaha o Ohinemutu. Kai ngā tiriti o Ariariterangi me Arataua a Rahiri hakoke ai.
He poumahi ia nā Te Rito Maioha – ECNZ. Ko ia te rangatira mātauranga ā rohe whaihoki he pouako tohu paetahi whakaako, ā he pouako pōkairua paetahi ā rangatira hoki ia. E toru tekau ngā tau te pakeke o Rahiri, ko ia hoki tetehi o ngā pou haka ka tū ki Te Matatini a te pae tata nei mā Ngāti Whakaue.
He ahakoa kāore anō a Ngāti Whakaue ki a toa i ngā whakataetae-ā-rohe o Te Arawa, ko te take nui e noho nei a Rahiri ki tana kapa, ko te whakapono ki te hapū o Ngāti Whakaue me te whakarauora i tōna whare pukenga me āna korero mātauranga.
He wā whakahirahira hoki tēnei mō te kapa ake e hoki ana ki Te Matatini, he ahakoa kua toru tekau mā whitu o ngā tau rātau e ngaro ana i te papa whakataetae matua o te ao Māori. E hoki ana ngā maumaharatanga ki te tau, e rua mano, e rua tekau ki te whakataetae-ā-rohe o Te Arawa, e noho puku katoa ana te kapa haka e tatari ana ki te kupu whakamutunga a Uncle Trev ki a mōhiotia te iwi ko wai te kapa whakamutunga ka haere ki Te Matatini. Ka hua ake e Trevor ' Nō tātau te waimarie ko rewa ana te ihu o te waka o Ngāti Whakaue’.
Nā reira i tino mōhio taku ngākau ko whai mana katoa ā tātau whakahekenga toihau. Aonga ake o te whakataetae-ā-rohe ka rere a Rahiri me āna hoa tata ki Bali ki a whakanā ai te ngākau. Nō te pō i mua o tā rātau hokinga mai ki Aotearoa,ka puta te karere, ka rua tekau mā whā o ngā hāora ka katia katoatia a Aotearoa. Ka nui te mataku o te wairua.
Engari mo te whakataetae kapa haka nei, e ripekatia katoatia ōna matimati ka whitia katoa tātau e Tamanuiterākura ā te rua tekau mā rua o Pepuere.
Ko Ohinemutu tōna pā kai ahi. I whānau a Rahiri i Ariariterangi, kai Arataua tōna whenua e tanu ana, engari he herenga anō tāna ki Te Whakarewarewa. Tā te mea i reira ētehi o āna whānaunga e mahi ana, ka tipi haere a Rahiri ki taua pā hoki. ‘Nā ōku kuia tokorua te kaupapa Oxycise i te pā. Ko Manu Neho me Tuhipo Kereopa tēnei tokorua, he ahakoa i Fenton mātau e noho kāinga ana, ka whiti tonu mātau ki Te Whakarewarewa, kaukau ai’.
Ko Ruakiri Fairhall tōna mahita kapa haka tuatahi ā rōpū pakeke. Wheoi anō rā he tamaiti ia nō te ao o Rēhia. ‘Nō mātau te whiwhi i te tiriti o Arataua kai kōnā ētehi pukeko nui. Ko Aunty Pare me Uncle Joe Hakaraia ki tētehi pito, ki tūā ko Aunty Din me Uncle Trev Maxwell. E hoki ana ngā maumaharatanga ki te wā o te whakangāhau tūruhi ki te poho o Tamatekapua, ki te wā e kaha nei a, ‘Magic of the Maori’.
Tētehi wā nui whakaharahara hoki, he pou haka tōku matua wahine, hai ētehi wā ka heke iho ahau ki te rāweke hoki i ngā poi-waeroa, mātau ko ōku karangatahi. Ko tōku kuia kaha a Manu Neho tētehi o ngā pou-ā -rohe, pou-ā-motu mō te kōmiti kapa haka.
Ko Tā Tīmoti Karetu tētehi o ngā manuwhiri ki tō mātau kāinga. Kai tētehi anō taima ka waihongia ngā taonga kapa haka katoa ki tō mātau kāinga, whetē ana aku kanohi, he mana nui. Ka hē hoki a Rahiri i ētehi raruraru iti ā tinana i tana huarahi haere o te kapa haka.
“Nōku e kura tuarua ana, he ngāwari te pai o taku tū ki te kapa o Ngāti Tarawhai, e rangatahi tonu ana te tinana me taku pakari hoki. Kai te wā o te pakeke, kua ngoikoe haere taku ihi, kua pokonati iti nei, nā reira ka taumaha haere mōku te huarahi o te ao kapa haka. Ka oti ana ā mātau whakangungu, kua pakaru taku tero. E āuē ana te tinana, kua hē katoa ngā turi, engari ko te pae tawhito te take i kaha tonu taku ngākau ki te huarahi. Ka rua, ko taku aroha mutunga kore ki te kapa haka.
“Titiro e hika mā, huri te kaupeka, huri te kaupeka kua whakamoea e ahau tērā tūāhuatanga. Kua pakeke ake ngā whakaaro. He hauora, he mauri ora, he tinana ora, nō reira he whakamihi nāku ki F45 kai kōnā tētehi wairua papai rawa atu!
E taumaha ā tinana nei, e tangi ana te ngākau, ko te huarahi ki te pae o te ora, kauaka he mea ā tinana anake, engari ā hinengaro hoki. Kua ora nei ahau i te HIIT, e tino kaha nei ahau mō te whakataetae e whakatata mai ana. E oti ana ngā koringa o te rā, kai te kaha tonu taku tinana,kai tawhiti kē te pirorehe. He oranga ngākau te whakapakari, ka maranga tahi ahau me ngā manu e kōrihi ana he kaupapa tāku, ka wepua!’.
“E warea nei ki ngā mahi pakeke, ko te kōrero tāunuunu ka whakamoeā'. Ka rima mēneti mātau e mahi ana, e waiata ana, kai te rongo ahau i te kaha tonu o taku tinana, kia tūpato e hoa mā kai hinga katoa i taku kaha ora nei’.
Nōna e kura tuarua ana i Te Kura o Rotohokahoka ka tino ū ki tana ngākau te aroha nui ki te kapa haka. “Tokotoru o mātau pouako. Ko Dan Vaka, ko Taumata Soloman, ko Te Ara Vakaafi, he mātanga katoa rātau’. Engari he whakamiha hoki nānā ki ngā hoa tata. Me i kore kotou, kai āku tūāhine tata, kai ngā hoa tata ā kura, e ngā kiri whānaunga hoki. Pii, Matepo, Tiahuia, Rangitiaria, Tihe, Tahangawari, Kata, Miriarangi , George, Te Rina, Tenga, Cori, Maha, a wai, a wai atu, a wai atu, te huhua noa atu e kore e tāea e ahau te whakahuahua i te whārangi kotahi, ngā hoa whakataetae, ngā hoa hāpai, e rere ana te ngākau ki a kotou katoa.’ Nō te tau ko pahemo haere ai te kapa o Ngāti Whakaue ki Tahiti, ki Moorea me Raiatea.
“Ka haere mātau me ngā taniwha hikuroa tokotoru. Ko Sir Robert Nairn Gilles tētehi o rātau. Ka tae mātau ki Taputapuātea, ka takahia te marae tapu i nōhia ai e o tātau tūpuna’. He mōhio nō Rahiri ki te kōrero Māori me te kawe i ngā tikanga o te kāinga. Māna enei take e waha nōna e mahi ana mā Te Rito Maioha-ECNZ.
“Ko te whakapapa, me he tangata matau koe ki te whakapapa penei i ahau penei i a matau i te pā taunaha, me he tamaiti whakapakeke koe e nga kuia mōhio pēnei i a Tuhipo, hēnā, kua mātau koe.
Ko te mea nui ko te whakapapa e kare, he wāhanga iti noa koe nōna – ko te mea nui ko te whakapapa, nā Tuhipo Kereopa tēnei kōrero. Ko tana koha ki a tātau katoa, “Tūhitia te hopo’ kāua e wehi. Rokohanga e koe tētehi kapa haka e rata nei koe, nōhia. kawea tōu reo.’ —Na Raimona Inia i whakamaori.
Despite his name, Rahiri Pouherenga Waka o Ngapuhi is unapologetically Te Arawa, born and raised in Ariariterangi and Arataua Streets at Ohinemutu.
He works for Te Rito Maioha – ECNZ as a Regional Education Leader and Lecturer in a Bachelor of Teaching and Post Graduate Diploma of Leadership programmes.
Rahiri, 30, will stand with Te Kapa Haka o Ngāti Whakaue at Te Matatini at Nga Ana Wai Eden Park later this month.
Even though Te Kapa Haka o Ngati Whakaue has yet to take out a regional title, the biggest flex for him is reviving Ngāti Whakaue traditions, whakapapa narratives, waiata, style and qualifying for Te Matatini for the first time in 37 years.
He vividly remembers the day at the 2020 Te Arawa regionals, waiting for Uncle Trev to name the kapa going to Matatini. He had all but given up hope then he heard the magic words. “It is good to have them back in the competition arena .th.th. Ngāti Whakaue” This was the day I knew the only way from here is .th.th. up.The day after the regionals Rahiri and friends flew to Bali for a break but the night before they were scheduled to fly home New Zealand’s borders were to shut in 24 hours. It was scary.
He has fingers crossed that Ngā Ana is completely dry by February 22 when Te Matatini begins.
Rahiri’s heart is Ohinemutu — he was born on Ariariterangi Street and his whenua is buried on Arataua Street — but he has a special tie to Whakarewarewa.
Because several members of his immediate whānau were working and guiding at Whakarewarewa –he spent quite a bit of time there too.
“My two kuia Manu Neho and Tuhipo Kereopa used to also run Oxycise classes in the village. Also, although we lived in Ōhinemutu we still made the trip across Fenton Street to bathe in Whakrewarewa.”
His first senior rōpū was Te Kapa Haka o Ngati Tarawhai under the tutelage of Ruakiri Fairhall and the Pirihi aunties.
But he was raised in Te Ao Haka. “On Arataua Street we were quite fortunate to have Aunty Pare and uncle Joe Hakaraia just behind us and Aunty Din and Uncle Trev [Maxwell] to our left.
“I remember when my mum used to do concerts at Tamatekapua for “Magic of the Māori” – of course I tried to get on that stage every night and do the four poi with my aunties and older cousins. Those shows were a touch of class.”My kuia Manu Neho used to work alongside Regional and national Kapa Haka Commitee. I remeber the likes of Tā Tīmoti Karetu coming to our whare for catch ups with nan before the competitions. I also remeber when all the trophies were dropped at our whare one time. My eyes were falling out of my head.” Rahiri had some physical issues to overcome as he progressed through the performing stages.
“My very first campaign with Ngati Tarawhai was easy as I was still in high school and my tinana was still quite young and fit.
“As I reached adulthood I had become extremely overweight and unfit – to the point where it was a chore to just even go through one item.
“I used to leave practice with aches all over my tinana – but the end goal was what kept me going. Plus my love of my iwi and kapa haka.
“Fast Forward a few campaigns and that feeling is now a thing of the past.
“I now have a new lease on life and how I view my wellbeing and the importance of hauora and keeping your tinana in check. I have F45 Rotorua to thank for that!
“I started to reclaim my life back after being extremely overweight and unfit. This is Holistic approcah to wellbeing – it is not just the physical side of things but also the mental side. “I have found that my HIIT Training has helped me immensly with my kapa haka trainings. I have found myself more physically and mentally prepared for what it takes to be a part of a Te Matatini campaign. I am nowhere near as tired and fatigied by the end of the day.
“I actually look forward to going to the gym in the mornings and then going to practice to smash it out.
“I am more focussed and more engaged as I am not worrying about “Oh gosh Im way too big and unfit for that”. I am now able to go through items without feeling totally exhausted after 5 minutes. I reckon I could also run rings around most of our performers now too.”
Inspiration for his current path came while Rahiri was at Western Heights High School. All his mates were members of Te Rōpū Mānaaki and he trialled for them.
“Our tutors at the time were Dan Vaka, Taumata Solomon and Te Ara Vakaafi.”
His path through Te Ao Haka has been helped by a number of people. “Where would I be in the haka world without the likes of waku nei sisters/pals/school friends/cousins – Pii, Matepo, Tiahuia, Rangitiaria, Tihe, Tahangawari, Kata, Miriarangi, George, Te Rina, Tenga, Cori, Maha- the list goes on .th.th.
“Not only have I stood on te papa whakatūwaewae alongside some of these individuals, they are the people ho keep my passion and hunger for kapa haka alive. Where would I be in the world of haka without my “sistees” especially.”
Te Kapa o Ngati Whakaue travelled to French Polynesia last year where they spent 10 days in Tahiti/Moorea/Raiatea.
“We were accompanied by 3 of our beautiful kōeke from Owhata and our koroua morehu Sir Robert Nairn Gillies. We were fortunate enough to make our way to Taputapuātea to set foot on the marae tapu where our ancestors once lived.”
Rahiri, although, not fluent in te reo, has a strong passion for Te Reo Māori me ōna tikanga and advocate and champion it within my role as academic Staff a part of Te Rito Maioha - ECNZ.
“As for whakapapa – well if you have strong whakapapa like I do and were raised around wahine such as Tuhipo – then you know “It is all about whakapapa, my dear – it is not about you, it is about whakapapa” (Tuhipo Kereopa)
His advice for the future? “Tūwhitia te hopo! Just do it! Find you a kapa that you feel at home with. And feel that your voice is heard and appreciated.”
COMPETITIONS:
Te Arawa Secondary Regionals 2009 – Te Rōpū Manaaki
Te Arawa Senior Regionals 2010 – Ngāti Tarāwhai
Te Arawa Senior Regionals 2016 – Ngāti Whakaue
Te Arawa Senior Regionals 2018 – Ngāti Whakaue
Te Arawa Senior Regionals 2020 – Ngāti Whakaue
Te Matatini ki Tamaki Herenga waka – Herenga Tangata - 2023
The fire took place around midnight and took firefighters three hours to control.